WINCHESTER, IN – The five high school bands in Randolph County, along with Purdue Wind Ensemble, will perform a free patriotic concert on April 12 at 1:00 p.m. Winchester Community High School’s Robert G. Jones Auditorium (700 N Union St). Titled “From Revolution to National Pride: A Randolph County Concert Celebrating 250 Years of Our Great Experiment in Liberty”, the event marks the first time all county bands will play with Purdue’s Wind Ensemble, conducted by award-winning and Indiana native Jay Gephart.
The county schools participating in the concert are: Winchester Community High School, Monroe Central Jr./Sr. High School, Randolph Southern Jr./Sr. High School, Union Jr./Sr. High School, and Union City Jr./Sr. High School. Concert attendees can expect to first hear from the Purdue Wind Ensemble, followed by music from the combined county bands and Purdue. Musical selections include “A Sousa Medley”, “United States Armed Forces Salute”, and “Star Spangled Spectacular.”
The event will also coincide with a visit from the “Freedom Truck” mobile museum, a traveling, interactive exhibit highlighting the story of America’s founding. The museum will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Winchester Community High School and is free to attend, with no tickets or advance registration required.
“The concert on April 12 is a collaborative effort of local organizations and people that care about our county and students, and in turn are finding creative ways to celebrate America’s Semiquincentennial,” said Lisa Jennings, Executive Director, Community Foundation of Randolph County. “This includes funding and support from the Community Foundation of Randolph County, Winchester Foundation, Randolph County United, and the Percy E. Goodrich Bandshell Fund, a component fund of the Randolph County Community Foundation. The concert, which revives a tradition of patriotic concerts supported by The Winchester Foundation, also serves as an opportunity to raise awareness for the Max and Dianne Jones Music Lesson Scholarship Fund and the Walter L. Shaw Music Lesson Scholarship Fund, which provides local students a pathway to music education.”
Max Jones, a longtime Indiana music educator and now retired, has been instrumental in bringing all of the pieces together for the concert. Jones spent 15 formative years in Randolph County. In 1968 he started teaching at Monroe Central Jr./Sr. High School, and in 1970 began his role as band director at Winchester Community High School where he led the renowned Winchester marching band “The Force.” He also holds a professional tie to Purdue University, where he served as Recruitment, Education and Outreach Coordinator and instructor for Purdue Bands, while assisting with the marching band and directing the Boiler Brass pep band.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with how Randolph County is stepping up to celebrate and commemorate America250,” said Chris Talley, Chairman, Winchester Foundation. “In addition to the concert, the county has plans for other patriotic events and a commemorative coffee table book to acknowledge the Semiquincentennial. Details will continue to be shared with our community as they’re finalized.”
For more information and to reserve tickets for the April 12 concert, please visit https://www.randolphcountyfoundation.org/event/from-revolution-to-national-pride-concert/.
ABOUT THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF RANDOLPH COUNTY
The Community Foundation of Randolph County (CFRC) partners with donors to leverage their philanthropy in ways that transform lives. Since 1993, the CFRC has helped generous donors to meet community needs, provide scholarship opportunities to local students, and make grants to nonprofit organizations working to improve Randolph County. The CFRC strives to be a local entity known for inspiring good and impacting success by bringing people and resources together. To learn more, go to www.randolphcountyfoundation.org.
ABOUT THE WINCHESTER FOUNDATION
Founded in 1945, The Winchester Foundation is a private foundation established to promote, encourage, and stimulate interest in and the study of the arts, music, philosophy, religion, community thrift and saving, humanities, and government or political science.